Inexperienced Lakeside still has high hopes

June 16, 2009

By Bob Taylor

Pitching and defense have long been the strengths of the Lakeside Recovery Senior American Legion baseball team. That appears to be the case again this summer for the club, which has one of its youngest and inexperienced rosters in years.Yet, like in every one of his 20 seasons as Lakeside manager, Rob Reese is optimistic about his team. He has good reason, too. Lakeside is off to a hot start this season, winning eight of its first nine games. The club, made up of players from Issaquah, Skyline and Newport high schools, swept Bellevue Honda last weekend, winning 3-2, 11-1 and 4-3.

“We’re off to a good start,” Reese said. “Some of our young guys are really doing a good job.”

The pitching staff is deep and includes two holdovers from last season’s team: Adrian Sampson and Blake Fulghum, both from Skyline. Sampson had a 4-1 record last year and Fulghum had a 3-2 record with three saves.

Sampson, who earned 4A KingCo Conference all-league first-team honors this spring, comes off a big high-school season. The junior right-hander had a 7-1 record, tying for the conference lead in victories. He topped the league in strikeouts with 63 and was third in earned run average at 1.85.

Reese is hoping Sampson can duplicate the season his older brother Julian Sampson, now pitching in the Philadelphia Phillies’ farm system, had as a junior. Julian Sampson blossomed into one of the top pitchers in the state that summer and was sensational in Senior American Legion post-season tournaments.

“Adrian has definitely been one of the top pitchers in KingCo. He has proved he can shine in the big games,” Reese said. “We’re definitely counting on him to have a big summer for us.”

The pitching staff also includes Shane Yarnell, Spencer Rogers, Matt Houser, Ethan Kalin, of Issaquah; Peyton Harrod and Jared Lemke, of Skyline; and Colin Hering, Jared Fisher and Cole Wiper, of Newport.

Yarnell, a junior right-hander, was 4-3 for Issaquah. He ranked second in 4A KingCo in strikeouts with 60. Yarnell was one of the key reasons Issaquah reached the 4A regionals this spring.

Rogers, probably best known as an outfielder, also pitched a lot for Issaquah. He had a 2-1 record with one save.

Hering, an outstanding outfielder and hitter, became one of Newport’s most dependable pitchers in the Knights’ run to the 4A semifinals. He won two key games to get Newport into the final four. Fisher had a 3-3 record for the Knights. Fulghum was 4-4 for Skyline while Lemke had a 2-1 record and Harrod, a reliever, had two saves.

“I think our pitching should be pretty good. We have good depth. We have guys who have pitched in big games,” Reese said.

Defensively, Lakeside looks solid up the middle. Devin O’Donnell, of Issaquah, will be the starting catcher. Trace Tam Sing, of Newport, will play shortstop; Shawn Ellis, of Skyline, will play at second base and at third base; Ryan Somers, of Skyline, is the utility guy who will play just about anywhere he’s needed; Kevon Zadeh, of Newport, will play at first base.

Tam Sing, in addition to being a solid defensive player, also ranked among KingCo’s top hitters with a .424 average.

“He’s really a good player. He hit the ball well for us last summer and we expect another good season from him,” Reese said.

The outfield features Rogers, a two-time all-league first-team selection; Hering, who earned all-state honors this season; Andrew West, of Newport; and Sean Penberthy, of Skyline.

The outfield will be strong offensively as Hering hit .439 this spring, Rogers batted .388, and Penberthy led Skyline in runs batted in with 16.

Rogers and Somers played for Lakeside last year. Rogers led the team in runs scored with 51 and hits with 69, and Somers topped the club in hitting with a .459 average.

“Somers gives us a lot of flexibility. In fact, we have some other guys who can play at other positions, too. It’s another one of our strengths,” Reese said.

Somers has a scholarship to Seattle University. Rogers has verbally committed to the University of Washington.

The team is younger this season, because some of the graduating seniors from the three feeder high schools decided to spend the summer working to earn money for college rather than play baseball. With the status of the national economy, Reese understands why those players decided to skip the season.

But he’s not counting out this club. Lakeside has a long, successful heritage. The program has won four state championships and has been to the Senior American Legion World Series.

“I think we have a pretty good team. I feel that way every year that we will have a team that will be competitive,” Reese said. “Definitely with our pitching staff and a good defensive team behind it, we have a chance to have a good season.”.

Yet, like in every one of his 20 seasons as Lakeside manager, Rob Reese is optimistic about his team. He has good reason, too. Lakeside is off to a hot start this season, winning eight of its first nine games. The club, made up of players from Issaquah, Skyline and Newport high schools, swept Bellevue Honda last weekend, winning 3-2, 11-1 and 4-3.